In “Understood Betsy,” Dorothy Canfield Fisher wrote a timeless children’s story about growing up and self-reliance.
“How to Think Like Shakespeare” by Scott Newstok
In “How to Think Like Shakespeare,” Scott Newstok considers the purpose of education and what we can learn from Shakespeare.
Robert Hudson Explains the House Fly — and Poetry
In “The Poet and the Fly,” Robert Hudson considers seven poets and how they used the common house fly to develop their themes.
Poets and Poems: Jane Kenyon and “Best Poems”
“The Best Poems of Jane Kenyon” provides a wonderful introduction to the full range of her accomplishments as a poet.
“Cross of Snow: A Life of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow by Nicholas Basbanes
“Cross of Snow” examines the lives of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and his wife Frances (“Fanny”), noting her significant contributions to his work.
Poetry and Healing: “Waiting for Neruda’s Memoirs” by Laura Boggess
The novella “Waiting for Neruda’s Memoirs” by Laura Boggess tells a story of a woman haunted by voices and healed through the power of poetry.
Poetry as a Way of Ordering Experience: “The Music of Time” by John Burnside
Poetry can be a way to bring meaning and order to one’s life, writes John Burnside in “The Music of Time: Poetry in the Twentieth Century.”
Rethinking the Role of the Poet: Essays by Micah Mattix
“The Soul Is a Stranger in This World” by Micah Mattix takes a refreshing look at familiar contemporary poets—and at the role of poetry itself.
It Was a Marvelous Year: “The Making of Poetry” by Adam Nicholson
In “The Making of Poetry,” Adam Nicolson tells the story of William Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge in 1797-98, when they created some of the greatest poetry written in the English language.
Packing Urgency and Story into 10-Minute Plays: “Winter Stars” by Sonia Barkat
In “Winter Stars,” a trio of 10-minute plays, Sonia Barkat uses a few characters and simple narratives to tell powerful stories.
Poets and Poems: Matt Duggan and “The Kingdom”
“The Kingdom,” the new chapbook by poet Matt Duggan, returns to what’s past, leaving you wondering if the past never really was.
Marjorie Maddox Writes Poems about Reading and Writing Poems
In “Inside Out,” Marjorie Maddox has assembled a series of poems about reading and writing poems. The poems show rather than tell, and it’s great fun.
Great Poetry as Seen by Comic Artist Julian Peters
In “Poems to See By,” comic artist Julian Peters illustrates 24 well-known poems, and in the process interprets meaning and adds understanding.
Buried in the Basement: “Tolkien’s Lost Chaucer” by John Bowers
A significant work by J.R.R. Tolkien on Chaucer sat unnoticed in a library basement for 60 years. “Tolkien’s Lost Chaucer” tells the story.
“Chaucer: A European Life” by Marion Turner
“Chaucer: A European Life” by Marion Turner is a significant work of scholarship on the context of the life of Geoffrey Chaucer.
Songwriting and Writing: “Adorning the Dark” by Andrew Peterson
“Adorning the Dark” by writer and songwriter Andrew Peterson speaks to the mystery at the center of writing, creativity, and inspiration.
“The Heart’s Necessities”: A Death, a Song, a Poem, and a Book
“The Heart’s Necessities” brings together the poetry and life story of Jane Tyson Clement and the music of Becca Stevens.
Horace Traubel and the Final Words of Walt Whitman
Thanks to Horace Traubel, we know much about Walt Whitman’s last years, Brenda WIneapple says in “Walt Whitman Speaks.”
“The Banished Immortal: A Life of Li Bai” by Ha Jin
“The Banished Immortal” by Ha Jin tells the story of Li Bai, considered China’s greatest poet, in an account drawn largely from his poetry.
Children’s Book Club: “Only One Woof”
Must every children’s book be zippy? Author Megan Willome discusses ‘Only One Woof,’ one of James Herriot’s animal stories.